Generally speaking, Major League teams covet the ability to get on base. Doing so doesn’t require a base hit. Rather, teams also look for hitters that can work counts and take a walk. And, some teams do it better than others. Here’s a look which MLB teams walked the most during the 2024 season, and which teams walked the fewest amount.
Most Team Walks in MLB During 2024 Season
Here’s a look at the top five teams in walks during the 2024 campaign:
| Rank | Team Name | Number of Walks in 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yankees | 672 |
| 2 | Dodgers | 602 |
| 3 | Brewers | 597 |
| 4 | Mariners | 571 |
| 5 | Diamondbacks | 569 |
The Yankees ranked eighth in the Majors in total walks (557) in 2023. New York (AL) walked 672 times in 2024, 70 more than the Dodgers.
Given who led the MLB in total walks, it’s not a shock why. Aaron Judge, who stayed healthy for all of 2024, led the Majors in walks (133). In second place was Juan Soto, added in the 2023-24 offseason. Soto finished with 129 walks.
The two, who batted 2-3 in the Yankees’ lineup, created a conondrum for MLB pitchers. Do you pitch around both, or take the chance and go after them? Given their prowess, even pitching around them is tough, simply because of their ability to damage with even the slightest mistake. Judge and Soto combined for 99 home runs this year.
The Dodgers, meanwhile, added another superstar in Shohei Ohtani to their lineup. Teams often pitched around Ohtani, even though he recorded the first 50-50 season in league history. Ohtani walked 81 times, fourth-most.
Freddie Freeman walked 78 times, tied for seventh alongside Gunnar Henderson and William Contreras.
One interesting note when looking at these numbers is how closely walks correlate with runs scored. It would make sense to think the more a team gets on base, the more runs will be scored.
Out of the five teams that ranked at the top of the walks stat, four ranked in the top six of runs scored. Arizona finished first with 886 runs, while the Dodgers (842, 2nd), Yankees (3rd, 815), and Brewers (6th, 777) also ranked among the league’s best.
The Mariners finished 21st in the Majors in runs scored (676). Thus, getting on base isn’t the sole factor why teams score runs.
Least Team Walks in MLB During 2024 Season
Now, the teams with the fewest amount of walks this season:
| Rank | Name | Number of Walks in 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| 30 | White Sox | 395 |
| 29 | Marlins | 403 |
| 28 | Royals | 429 |
| 27 | Astros | 448 |
| 26 | Rockies | 453 |
The White Sox scored the fewest runs (507) in Major League Baseball last season, almost 100 runs fewer than the Rays (604), who finished 29th. And, Chicago (AL) finished dead-last in the MLB standings. Thus, it’s not a shock to see the White Sox at the bottom of this list.
Out of the five teams with the fewest amount of walks, only the Marlins (27th, 637) and White Sox ranked in the bottom five of runs scored. Colorado, who played half their games in hitter-friendly Coors Field, ranked tied with the Tigers for 19th in runs scored (682).
The Royals (735, 13th in runs scored) and Astros (740, 11th) ranked in the top half of the league in that category.
Houston had two players, Jeremy Pena and Yainer Diaz, rank in the bottom five of the league in BB% among qualified hitters. However, both Diaz and Pena hit well in 2024. Diaz hit .299 with 16 home runs, while Pena hit .266 with 15 home runs.